5 Important Reasons You MUST Cleanse Your Face Morning and Night

And yes, I do mean morning and night. It’s MUCH more important than you think. And I don’t mean merely splashing your face with water in the shower. Rinsing is not washing. You need a cleanser. Of course, we recommend FutureDerm Skin Reborn Facial Cleanser 8.31.

Here are the facts:

1. Research shows cleansing before bed is essential to looking younger, longer.

Every day your skin is aging. And the very simple process of washing your face before bed is an excellent way to mitigate the external factors associated with aging and to stimulate the internal processes that fight aging.

Research has shown that certain physiological changes in the skin do occur overnight. Like many of our organs, our skin can tell night from day. Biological processes vary over 24 hours as a result of time-sensitive “clocks” within our cells, said Dr. David R. Weaver, a neurobiology professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Some evidence exists linking circadian clocks to cell cycle (cells dividing to replenish dead ones) and DNA repair, the natural process by which a cell regularly detoxifies itself. (Impact Journals: Aging.)

Overnight, the skin needs oxygen to repair itself. And sleeping with your makeup on deprives it of this vital nutrient. “When makeup is left on, it blocks the natural exfoliating process, which can leave your skin looking dull”, says Dr. Robins Ashinoff, Director of Cosmetic Dermatology at Hackensack Medical Center in New Jersey.

Nocturnal blood flow in the skin is higher. And when blood flow is increased so is absorption and penetration of ingredients. So again, if you aren’t washing you can’t apply actives that will help fight aging (or acne or whatever your skin condition might be).

Thus, If you don’t wash your face before bed it’s a missed opportunity to do something great for your skin and to wake up with smoother, softer, clearer skin.

3. Forgoing nighttime cleansing regularly will give you larger pores.

First, consider that excess sebum (oil), dead skin cells, and pollution are sitting on your face. Not to mention makeup (and just because you don’t wear foundation is no excuse). A cleanser will emulsify all of these and remove them from the surface of your skin. According to Dr. Dennis Gross, M.D., when makeup is left on it can seep deep down, clogging pores. He also says that once your collagen levels start to decline (due to aging), the pores do not snap back as easily once they become enlarged. And, leaving makeup on can lead to inflammation that can generate free radicals and collagen breakdown.

This in part causes the skin to lose a significant portion of water at night. According to an article, Nocturnal Itch, by the Departments of Dermatology and Neurobiology & Anatomy at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, transepidermal water loss (TEWL) is significantly increased during the night, which is why our skin can sometimes feel more itchy at night. Thus, if you don’t wash your face, you can’t apply a moisturizer which will help hydrate your skin while you sleep.

5. Daytime cleansing prevents excess oil production.

You may be thinking: So why then do I have to wash it again in the morning; I went to bed with it clean? As we just learned, overnight your skin recovers. Which means in the morning you have more dead skin cells to slough off. And more excess sebum to emulsify. These can’t be rinsed away with mere water. Here’s an analogy: I own 2 cats and I can tell you for certain that when my favorite sweater is full of cat hair I can shake it all I want, but that hair isn’t budging unless I take a lint roller to it. Same with dead skin cells and excess sebum…you need to dislodge them and then rinse them away. Water alone removes only about 65% of oil and debris from the surface of the skin (Livestrong Article). Think about what you’re leaving behind – yikes!

Do you really want to put your makeup on top of dead skin cells and excess oil? I think not…